The first co-host was Steve Wariner, who was enjoying his first hit on the Arista Records label, “The Tips of My Fingers.” The song ultimately went to #1. Other co-hosts during the shows first year included Reba McEntire, Trisha Yearwood, and Brooks & Dunn. The show's unique live sound and funny conversation quickly made it a favorite with the “hot new country” stations that were becoming popular. It wasn't long before the show became one of the biggest country shows in the US, and one of the most popular syndicated shows in Westwood One's line-up. When Amber Radio launched in the east of England in September 1995, it included the show in its line-up, country having long been popular in the region. It was also taken by Century Radio in north-east England. On July 20, 2022, it was reported that Compass Media Networks would began distributing Country Countdown USA on August 1. Features Regular features in the show include The Week's Hottest Song, which was originally based on a feature in Radio & Records. The newspaper eliminated the feature in the late 90s, but it was kept in the radio show, basing it on the song in the Top 5 with the most increased points. During the early years, the show also featured disc jockeys from the show's affiliates talking about upcoming concert attractions in their area before introducing a hot-breaking song at their station (always a song that had yet to reach the top 30). One popular new element in recent years has been taking tape clips of previous co-hosts talking about artists in the chart, and playing them for those artists. This allowed listeners to get unique insights into their favorite stars. The last two weeks of December feature CCUSA's annual year-end countdown. A "Top 70 program" split in two parts (songs 36–70 in Week 1, the top 35 in the following show), Helton features interview highlights from the past year, plus a "live" interview with the artist having the No. 1 song of the year. Stations can play each three-hour program separately, while many often will play both parts—as a six-hour program—during at least one of the two weekends. Success The success of Country Countdown USA and the continued boom in country music led to the creation of several other regular country shows at Westwood One. At the time, the company did a new release show for